Today, I was sitting at my Blue Work space and I happened to notice the purse on the space next to me. It was a Dooney-Bourke Mickey Mouse purse. I knew instantly that this was a person I needed to meet. I asked around, but no one recognized the purse, or remembered who had left it there. Eventually, the owner returned to her desk and I introduced myself. We had a quick chat and talked all things Mickey Mouse. It was the highlight of my day.

Whether you know it or not, there is a passionate army of adult women on the Internet, in your office, and maybe even in your home who are obsessed with Disney. They make multiple trips to the theme parks each year, collect Disney-themed items, and even dress up as Disney characters — on days other than Halloween. More than seven million millennial women devoured articles about Disney this year on POPSUGAR. Many of these women, who grew up on The Little Mermaid and The Lion King, have celebrated 30th birthdays, honeymoons, and even weddings at a Disney resort.

Disney fans know that many people don’t get it. Almost unanimously, they said that the number one misconception about them is that they are immature. But before you judge your co-worker, high school friend on Facebook, or distant family member for their age-inappropriate Disney fangirling on social media, at least try to understand just what Mickey and his gang of princesses do for them.

In an age of aspirational social media and highly curated brands online, Disney nails it — in real life. For a generation that looked to Internet personality quizzes to tell them something about themselves, Disney can reflect your true self. Your favorite park, movie, or character is a reflection of your personality. Loving Disney gives you an identity. It means you are a person who believes in magic, happiness, and imagination.

You know that Disney is genius at Marketing and masters at separating you from your dollars. So why are there times when you want to buy a Disney animated movie, but no matter where you look, you can’t find it anywhere for purchase?

The secret is the Disney Vault. There are 16 animated movies that Disney has classified as “vaultable” and Disney releases them for a limited time. Then the classics disappear and are safely locked away for up to 10 years. The movies are held and then released for a new generation. Do you know which movies Disney has classified as “vaultable”.

As I look at young married couples, I see two people, deeply in love who slowly begin to notice the changes they would like to make in their spouse. He would be great, if he would just learn to be more handy around the house. She would be great, if she would just ask Mom for some of her recipes. It reminds me of the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland, who wants red roses, when she has beautiful white roses.

We can get to a point where a “but” follows everything we think about our spouse. I love that my husband is a hard worker, but I wish he helped more with the housework. I am so proud of my wife’s cooking, but I hate cleaning up the dishes. I loved my trip to Disneyland, but I had to wait in a line for every ride. You see how the but, diminishes the happy feelings?

Maybe it is because we found each other later in life, but Hot Hubby and I are clear that we married a person that isn’t going to change. We are still in the process of melding our two lives, so we occasionally have to talk about how we do things. Hot Hubby will begin by saying, “Do we have a way that we (insert topic like “load the dishwasher”)? Then I will think about it. If it “has” to be my way and I am willing to take this task as “mine” for eternity, then I will say “Yes, I really like it this way. Let me do it for you.” If I am not willing to take the task for eternity and never correct how it is done, then I say, “What do you recommend?” We talk about how each of us would do it, then we decide on how “we” are going to do it going forward.

At work, I see a lot of arranged marriages that thrive and last. My coworkers explain that in America, you fall in love and then you spend your life falling out of love. In their culture, you get married and then you spend a lifetime falling in love with your spouse.

I am going to spend my time enjoying the white roses and falling in love with my Hot Hubby everyday.

When you were a kid, did you wear your favorite Disney costume to Disneyland and after about 2 hours you were itchy and wishing for some comfortable leggings and tennies. Now that I am grown, costumes are banned by Disney’s policy: Costumes may not be worn by Guests 14 years of age or older. Hot Hubby and I cannot pass for 14 anymore.

So what is a girl to do? Lucky for us, Leslie Kay invented DisneyBound-ing! It is the art of dressing like the Disney characters with colors and style, without going “full costume”. DisneyBound is meant to be inspiration for you to pull together your own outfits which work for your body and wallet whether from your closet or elaborate shopping spree. It used to be restricted to the Parks, but Disney fans are spotting the style everywhere. If you take the brightest colors in your wardrobe, you can put together a DisneyBound outfit for your next trip. Below is an example from Leslie Kay’s site.

I tried to convince Hot Hubby to DisneyBound PeterPan on our last visit to Disneyland. But he refused to even consider the green tights I had picked. I will have to find a Disney character that wears blue jeans and a blue shirt.